Oy, I've been such a bad knitter.

I haven't been working on ANYTHING lately. I finally, finally started up again on Secret Project #2. It's coming along nicely now.

I also just started another Knithulhu. Yes, it's my third. I just met--ok, RE-met, since we were friends in high school--someone who loves Cthulhu, and whose eyes lit up when I told him I knit one. OK, he needs a cuddly little Knithulhu of his own. :) Besides, that little elder god knits up quickly from yarn I already have in my stash, so...no sweat. I finished the head and the rectangle for the body. Still to come: stuffing and seaming the head and body, knitting and attaching the wings, crocheting and attaching the tentacles, and sewing on the eyes. I need buttons for that and another project. I also need stuffing! Wish I still worked in a place where it's easy to get to Windsor Button on lunch break, but it takes me 10-20 minutes just to get to the red line now from this location. Meh. Maybe Friday evening? Or maybe one of the craft stores in Central will have what I need. Worth a look! I can do that this afternoon! Now I have a Plan.

Grr!

Damn, that's frustrating. I got a gift card to Woolcott & Co. from my manager, as a holiday gift. Unfortunately, I missed their inventory sale where all the yarn was 20% off! I was planning on going there tonight to get some yarn for three, count 'em, THREE baby sweaters. No, I am NOT having triplets. Gods, no. I have four pregnant friends, three of whom are particularly good friends, and I am going to make sweaters in the same style but different colors for their babies. I figure for the not-quite-as-close friend, I'll make her a hat or some booties or something with some yarn I have in my stash. I also have two online friends who are pregnant. Sheesh. Why is everyone having babies NOW?

I think I'll hit Windsor Button where they have more inexpensive yarns available, and which is also right on the orange line so getting home will be easier. I'll save the Woolcott card for another day.

The first transport is away!

So, on Wednesday, I sent off the "She's Partial to the Periwinkle Blue" stole to M's mom (and of course a gift for his dad, too). I included a note with instructions to handwash in cool water with mild detergent and lay flat and shape to dry.

The blocking of this stole worked out PERFECTLY. I gently washed it in the sink, then I rolled it in a towel to press out excess water. I put a couple more towels on the futon in the guest room, then laid out the stole and pinned it down using T-pins. I left it for a few days, and when I unpinned it, it stayed right in place. Sweet!

I haven't touched Intolerable Cruelty in a few days. I've been busy. But on Tuesday, I did move it from the needles to a piece of scrap yarn so I could try it on. Wow! It seems to be a perfect fit! Excellent. I'm so happy. :)

Continuing cruelty

Progress is occurring! Yay! I've got a few inches done on the Intolerable Cruelty skirt now. I had finished the first batch of increase rounds, but then decided that I didn't like the increases I'd been using at all. They made me cringe. I decided to frog down to the end of the waistband again. I did that on Friday night, at a small stitch 'n' bitch I hosted at my place. Since then, I've gotten back to where I had been and then did about another 25 rounds or so. I'm pleased with myself for the all this work. Plus, the increases look SO much better! They're pretty much invisible now, and neatly paired on each side of the side seam markers. Whew.

So cruel!

Hooray! I cast on for Intolerable Cruelty on Thanksgiving night! Let me tell you right now: I think I'm falling in love with this yarn. It is smooth and comfortable to knit with, and not at all splitty. The fabric it's making is sleek and softly shiny. Gorgeous! I've gotten the waistband done, and the setup round, and am working on the increase round. I'm quite pleased with the bamboo needles. The yarn is so smooth that even with bamboo needles, it slips along very quickly.

In other news, I ended up giving my mom one of the two mini Christmas stocking ornaments I made: she picked the red, white, and green acrylic one. I've kept the red and white cotton one for my own tree.

I'm just about bouncing up and down in anticipation of the arrival of my Big Ass Cone of Bamboo Yarn from Halcyon. 1050 yards of DK bamboo for about $36 with the shipping! Unbelievable! I can't wait to get started on the skirt. I think I'm going to go with the bamboo needles for this, partly because I think they'll help me from knitting too loosely and getting a saggy skirt.

I'm also obsessed with finding another sweater to knit. A pullover this time. I'm considering Bombshell from Big Girl Knits (probably with 3/4 sleeves) and also Stephanie Japel's Simple Knitted Bodice. I know I want a low-ish neckline, some waist shaping, and a reasonably easy place to put short rows (i.e., no wacky stitch patterns or colorwork at the bust that I'd have to worry about). Those two fit the bill nicely. Looking at Ravelry, it's amazing how some people turn them out looking perfect, and others make them look awful. The garments themselves often look equally good, but it's the FIT that makes the difference. I will not be lazy with fitting. I will NOT. I will be very careful and do my math. I will try on as I go. I'll be a good knitting doobie. :)

Project!

So. On Saturday, I placed an order for a one-pound cone of this gorgeous stuff, in color #12, "Lipstick". That will be used to make this!

See, shortly after making that last poll, I had a brilliant idea. I will start Intolerable Cruelty. If all that stockinette gets intolerably boring, I will take a break and start working on a Dalek. Then I'll go back to the skirt. I think this says about me that I am neither entirely a project knitter nor entirely a process knitter. Generally, I do pick things to knit that I simply want to have as an FO. This is "project knitter" style. But I also like a bit of a challenge in the work, and if I'm working on something very simple for a long time, I get bored and want to do something different. This is "process knitter" style.

I took my measurements today. 39-28-37. Huh. Not too bad considering I've been feeling bigger than usual lately. I'd like that middle number to drop a little, but I think that might have to wait until after the holidays. Anyway, this means that the small size IC will probably be just right for me. That's not a typical thing for me, with knitting patterns (either the "small" part OR the "just right" part). It also means I really do need to get a book that will teach me sweater alteration and design tricks. Or, you know, maybe more than one. Why limit myself to one? I'm thinking Big Girl Knits and some other book. Or maybe BGK and a whole bunch of web-based articles. We'll see.

Ooh. I also need a 24" size 4 circular, since that's one size that is NOT in my Denise Interchangeables. What works best with a smooth bamboo yarn? Are metal needles too slippery, and would bamboo be better? Or are they good and fast? I'm thinking of actually buying a pair of Addi Turbos. Zut alors! :)

Presents

I want to make a hat for my friend. Said friend has a large, bald head. I imagine it gets rather cold in the winter. I would LIKE to knit from my stash on this, but I don't know if I have any yarn that is both warm enough to keep his head from getting cold in the winter, and soft enough not to be scratchy on his shaved head. Meh.

There's also the issue that I don't know how big his head is. If I ask him, he'll know I'm knitting him a hat. I could ask his girlfriend, but the relationship issues are a bit...complicated at the moment. Not bad--she and I like each other just fine--but complicated.

I'm contemplating Knitty's Halfdome, but knit at a bulkier gauge for more warmth. We'll see.

In the meantime, I might knit up a hat or two for charity. I need to bust some stash, and damn it, I want to knit SOMETHING.

Rant

You know what I wish?

I wish that every knitting pattern would say, "This is how much ease is at the bust, waist, and hip (or whatever's appropriate) for the model in the picture." Then you know, "Oh, if I want it to fit like that, I should probably have about that much ease, so I should make this size." That would make life so very much easier. Or at least put, "This item is designed to have X, Y, and Z ease at these points." This is why I e-mailed about half a dozen people on Ravelry to ask them about how much ease they had at the hip in their Intolerable Cruelty skirts. I went through EVERY PICTURE, and picked out the ones whose fit I liked the best, usually on people whose bodies were at least somewhat similar to mine in general shape (not too skinny but not too big in the hips). But I don't want to have to do that with everything I make. I might, though, since it doesn't look like putting ease in the pattern is going to be the standard any time soon.

I want to make another, cuter sweater. A pullover, this time, not a cardi. And I want it to be fitted but flattering, and CUTE. I like the look of the Bombshell sweater in the Big Girl Knits book, which I don't actually own. I am thinking about getting it because I hear their design instructions are really great. I'd probably have to scale the pattern down a bit, but hopefully the design instructions would help me figure out how to do that while still keeping the shape I want. If you've seen the pattern for Bombshell, I'm thinking a little negative ease at the ribbing under the bustline, short rows above the ribbing to help shape the bust, and maybe a bit smaller at the hip proportionally than it's designed. Or I might make something else entirely.

In other news: I have finished the Brea Bag, at last! I finally said "f*** it" to the lining and just finished it. It's actually quite cute! I'm reasonably happy with it. I am now working on another little in-between project: a bag for my zills (belly dance finger cymbals). It's in a pale pink cotton/viscose/silk blend I got in a Yankee swap. Svale, it's called. I don't much like the yarn for knitting. It loses its twist very quickly when I knit, and as a result, it splits very easily. Still, it's looking rather nice in a simple seed stitch on size 5 needles. I'm just doing a rectangle with a row of eyelets at the top and bottom. Then I'll fold it in half so the two eyelet bands match up, seam the sides, and make a little i-cord (possibly with some beads) to close the bag.

The FO, modeled

Remember back when I knit that sweater for a coworker's baby? Well, now she's big enough to wear it, and it's cute as anything. :)

Here is the lovely Baby J, modeling the Super-Natural Stripes cardi!